my heart belongs to australia

A year ago, I took a holiday to Australia for two glorious weeks, and fell in love with a country.  I've always been a wanderluster, and have been lucky to visit several other countries over the past ten years.  I've spent time in France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Costa Rica, Jamaica, Mexico, the Bahamas, and Canada, and each has been an incredible adventure.  But I have to say, as far as countries go, Australia is my soul mate.  I've been daydreaming about this particular trip a lot recently, and conjuring up excuses in my mind for why I need to get back there soon.

If I could live in Australia, I'd likely move to Byron Bay.  This laid back beach town had the prettiest little boutiques, amazing art, beautiful surf, incredibly friendly people, and we saw a rainbow every single day.  Byron Bay is also the reason I got to visit Australia in the first place - my fiance's band played the annual musical festival there.

After the festival ended, Robbie and I traveled with another couple up to Queensland, to visit Kuranda and Palm Cove.  Kuranda was beyond gorgeous - a village in the rainforest.  There was a very bohemian vibe there, with lots of shops and stands full of handmade goodies.  My favorite part was the koala sanctuary.  I've always been slightly obsessed with koalas, and getting to be this close to them had been a life-long dream of mine.  Palm Cove was also absolutely lovely.  We stayed in a little eco-hotel a block from the ocean, and got up to watch the sun rise everyday.

In all honesty, it would be pointless for me to try to put into words the magnitude of this adventure.  Snorkeling the Great Barrier Reef was the most surreal, stunning experience of my life.

Our short stint in Sydney was a beautiful mistake.  Our flight from Cairns back to the U.S. included a brief layover in Sydney, but the first leg of the flight was canceled at the last minute.  So we were given a free night in Sydney, and Robbie's dream of visiting the Sydney Opera House came true.  We spent a few hours exploring the city too, and I hope to spend more time there one day.  It reminded me a lot San Francisco (my favorite city here in the U.S.)

These are just a tiny handful of the hundreds of photos we took (I've mentioned in past posts that photography is a huge part of my travels), but I wanted to share a glimpse into what proved to be the most creatively and spiritually inspiring trip of my life so far.  I hope this little picture show brings some inspiration to your day as well!

Happy Memorial Day!